The North saw 4.1 repossessions per 1,000 households in 2014, while the South saw just 2.9. To compare with a year ago, the repossessions rates per 1,000 households for the North and South in 2013 were 5.4 and 3.9 respectively, meaning the gap has narrowed 19% year-on-year.
Across England and Wales, home repossessions as a whole have fallen. There were 39,938 repossession orders in England and Wales in 2014, 25% down from 53,325 in 2013. There are now 3.5 repossession orders per 1,000 households in England and Wales, down from 4.7 in 2013.
Although 44% of Northern towns had above average repossession rates in 2014, this is greatly improved compared to 2013, when 78% of Northern towns had repossession rates above the national average.
There are also further signs of improvement. In 2014, only 6 out of the top 10 repossession postcodes were in the North, while in 2013 the North was home to 8 out of the top 10 repossession postcodes.
Richard Sexton, director of e.surv chartered surveyors, believes that the North-South repossession gap is clearly closing as the financial performance of the South East spreads across the country.
Northern towns are less prominent as repossessions hotspots. Brits are feeling the benefits of falling fuel and food prices, which have filtered through into low inflation, and even deflation in the first part of 2015. All the while, wages are increasing, meaning there is more money to go around. This has given financially fragile homeowners the chance to bolster their credit and retreat from the repossession threat. The economic environment has helped greater numbers in the North, as there were more borrowers on the edge in this area.
The Government’s plans to devolve power to the regions could help eradicate the remaining rift – with more opportunity for long-term local investment. This will allow for targeted spending to create jobs in areas that need them the most – which may dramatically relieve repossessions.”
However despite significant improvements in repossession rates in the North, the North West still saw the highest rate of repossessions per thousand households (4.6) in 2014. And 86% of towns in the North West had repossession rates above the England and Wales average (3.5).
Meanwhile, though overall rates were slightly lower in the North East (4.5) every major town in the region had more repossessions than the England and Wales average. The North East was tied with Wales as the least improved region, with repossessions falling just 23% between 2013 and 2014.
The city of Bradford in Yorkshire and the Humber that had the highest rate of repossessions in England and Wales: 6.2 per thousand homes in the city were repossessed in 2014. Bradford was closely followed by Oldham in the North West (6.1) and Sunderland in the North East (5.8).
London had a slightly lower repossessions rate than the average across England & Wales, with 3.5 repossessions per 1,000 households in 2014, down by a quarter (25%) since 2013.
However, the healthy-looking London average conceals some of the best and worst postcodes for repossessions. West-Central London (0.9) has the lowest rate of repossessions in England and Wales, but postcode-neighbours Ilford (5.8) and Romford (5.3) are respectively the fourth and seventh worst repossession hotspots in England and Wales.
Richard Sexton continued: “Budget cuts in the wake of the crash led to a swathe of job losses from which the North is only just starting to recover. In the North West particularly, there is a greater rate of home repossessions than any other region.
But the picture isn’t entirely bleak. Every region is clearly performing better than last year, pushing down repossession rates as the country gets its finances under control. We need to use the example of the North West as a useful reference. As the Chancellor clearly recognises, it’s not enough to cater solely to the regions that managed to dust themselves off after the recession. Ensuring that the North has the capability to get on top of its repossession problem is going to be an interesting marker for the fate of the ‘Northern Powerhouse’.
George Osborne’s mooted plans to devolve more power to Northern cities could make or break this burgeoning recovery. If the trial run in Manchester takes off, it could pave the way for local authorities to take greater ownership of their local infrastructure. This could allow them to tailor their futures to meet their demands. The North East and North West may be struggling – but the challenges they face may not respond to solutions that work for the rapidly improving East of England.”
